I have been watching the TV show Army Wives, which has given me great cause to reflect on Southernness lately. The show is set in Charleston, SC and although I like the show, I am sooo annoyed by the fake Southern accents. Why can't they have Southerners play Southerners? Sela Ward is just as hot as Kim Delaney, only she's from Mississippi. Just sayin'. One of the characters, Roxie, is supposed to be from Tuscaloosa. However, the actress who plays her is a New Yorker. I have lived in Alabama for 24 years and I have never heard anyone use the word "everythin'." Sorry.

On a related note, I have finally decided to embrace my Southernness. I used to be very quick to point out that I'm a transplant, but the fact of the matter is that the 24 years I've spent in Alabama constitute 83% of my life. The thing about being a Southerner is that it's awesome when you're around other Southerners, but as soon as you breach the boundary of the South, you're a stupid, inbred racist wearing your only pair of shoes. Every time I travel, I find myself having to defend my accent and our culture. When I was in Ghana, I was the only Southerner among the volunteers, and despite the fact that I was also the most educated, I had to constantly defend every decision and every suggestion. One volunteer from California blatantly asked me if I was a racist. Yes, I am a racist. That's why I came to work in a country with virtually no white people. I kind of started to play into a little, pretending to be confused when people mentioned that they missed air conditioning and stuff like that. But the fact is, it really isn't funny. Do people actually think that the South hasn't changed in the last 200 years? And worse, that we should all be reduced to our worst stereotype? When I meet Germans, I don't assume they're Nazis. When I meet people from South America, I don't ask them if they're drug dealers. The suck thing is, Westerners and Northerners don't even have a stereotype. How did that happen?

Ok. Rant over. So, in the midst of embracing my Southernness, I have learned over the last year how to cook like a Southerner. I finally learned how to make gravy! Hey, don't judge. It's harder than you might think. I am a person of proportions; I need ratios, dammit! If you ask any Southern woman how to make gravy (or anything, for that matter), the recipe is "a little oil, then some flour, then quite a bit of water, salt and pepper to taste." That is NOT a recipe! So it took quite a bit of trial and error to perfect this. And a cast iron skillet. I have also learned to make great chicken and dumplings, cornbread, fried chicken, and some good grits dishes. I'm also no longer afraid of butter. Perhaps the best aspect of Southern culture is the food. I never wonder why Southerners are fat. I do, however, wonder how non-Southerners get fat in the absence of great gravy.

I came across this really great quote on a blog I read often: "Growing up Southern is a privilege, really.... It's more than loving fried chicken, sweet tea, football, beer, bourbon, and country music. It's being hospitable, devoted to front porches, magnolias, moonpies, and Coca-Cola... and each other."